He remembered now the odd change that came over Scott every time he spoke about the medical possibilities of human cloning, the way his eyes always seemed to gloss over with something approaching desperation whenever he talked about it.
And he remembered the coffee cup.
Scott had all the early signs of a serious neurological disease. Either Parkinson’s or, far more likely, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis—ALS. In either case, it was going to get worse. In either case, he was dying.
It made sense. It answered a lot of questions. But as Jeremiah stared at the computer screen, it presented even more ominous ones: if Charles Scott was sick, what did that say about this experiment? What did that mean for him?
The realization hit him before he even saw it coming. Scott’s own words echoed in Jeremiah’s mind: “Our work means everything, Mr. Adams. It means mankind can finally be free of all the random, senseless frailties of the human body. It means a second chance.”
The meaning of those words became suddenly crystal clear. Charles Scott didn’t care about second chances for the whole of humanity. He wanted a second chance for himself.
Despite what he’d told Brent and everyone else, his motives weren’t purely scientific. He was in it to save his own life. And that clock was ticking.
Charles Scott was a desperate man. Worse, Jeremiah realized, he was a desperate man with a lot of money at his disposal and in a position of considerable power. Jeremiah felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up: right now, Charles Scott controlled every aspect of Jeremiah’s entire life and that fact probably meant very little to him.
Chapter 13
Day 82
On Sunday morning, Jeremiah picked up the landline phone and asked to see Dr. Pike as soon as possible. He knew better than to confront Pike with his suspicions about Scott, but he wanted to speak to him, to see if he could discern anything from the man’s demeanor. An hour later, Pike had his head inside Jeremiah’s refrigerator. He emerged with an expression of utter confusion.
“There are plenty of healthy choices here, Mr. Adams. I really don’t think you’re in danger of starving.”
“I am if I don’t eat it.”
“I’m afraid your recent physicals have been unsatisfactory. You need to lose some weight. You are nearly seven pounds heavier than your clone. I’ve been telling you for weeks now to watch your diet and use the treadmill more. If you’d listened to my advice, you wouldn’t be in this situation now.”
“Can’t you just fatten up the clone?” Jeremiah asked, only half joking. “Sneak in and switch a few things around in his fridge. He’ll catch up in no time. And, that way, no one gets hurt.”
“This isn’t funny,” Pike said.
“I’m not trying to be funny. Look. I have months left here. Why is it so important that I catch up to the clone right this minute?”
“It’s very important,” Pike said. “If something were to happen, something which made it necessary for you to switch places with your double at a moment’s notice, you’d have a hard time explaining to people how you managed to gain seven pounds in a matter of hours.”
“Yeah,” Jeremiah said. “I suppose. I just don’t see why I have to be the one to suffer. I mean, I lead a very limited life here, Dr. Pike. Food is kind of the best part of my day. And you’ve stocked this place with things that taste like plastic and cardboard. Can we compromise? Just a little?”
Dr. Pike closed the refrigerator and turned to Jeremiah with a severe expression.
“I’m afraid not,” he said at last. “This is too important. I’ll make a deal, however. If you can shed five pounds by your next physical, in about one month, I will agree to some modest adjustments to your food selections. I’ll let you select three things to put back in your diet. In moderation.”
Jeremiah sighed. “I’m calling Dr. Scott,” he said. “We’ll see what he has to say about this. He’s always telling me how he wants me to be comfortable.”
“Don’t bother Dr. Scott with something so trivial.”
Jeremiah stared at Pike. He definitely noted something more behind his words. He was sincerely worried about the man.
“I’m calling him,” he said.
“I believe you’ll find he is in total agreement with me on this,” Pike told him. “I’ll see you at our next appointment.”
“We’ll see about that!” Jeremiah shouted before the door closed behind the doctor.
He picked up the landline phone again and put it to his ear.
“Good morning, Mr. Adams. This is Andrea. How can I help you?”
“I need to speak with Dr. Scott.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t connect you directly, but I could take a message for him.”
“Why can’t I just speak to him?” he asked. “It’s important.”
“He isn’t in the facility at the moment.”
“Then put me through to his ViMed office.”
“It’s Sunday, Mr. Adams. He isn’t there. And even if he were there, you know I can’t do that.”
“No, I suppose not. When is he due back?”
“He won’t be in today. I expect him to call later.”
Jeremiah turned when he heard the familiar click of a key card opening the front door. Brent came in dressed in a wrinkled T-shirt, his red hair in its usual state of chaos.
“Okay, fine,” Jeremiah told Andrea. “Just have him call me.” He put the receiver back on its cradle and turned to Brent. “Charles Scott isn’t even here today,” he said. “Who’s watching the monkeys?”
“He wasn’t here yesterday, either,” Brent told him. “I suppose he has other things to do. He is busy, you know.”
“Other things? I can’t imagine anything important enough to take him away from his precious experiment for two
